Are you planning a trip to Ottawa? Often eclipsed in travelers' imagination by other popular Canadian urban centers like Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, or Quebec City, this metropolis located on the Ottawa river in the eastern part of south Ontario plays an important role in the country's cultural and administrative life. As such, it has a lot going for it. In this article, we share a few fun facts about visiting Ottawa to get you prepped and excited for your stay!
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It's Canada's official capital city! (Remember?)
We’re going to kick things off with an often overlooked or forgotten fact: Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. No, we know, it comes as a shock to us all, but really, Toronto isn't the top dog - Ottawa really is the capital city. If you're like us, you probably learned this in school and relegated it to the back of your mind, thinking Toronto or Vancouver held the title...
This is like when you find out that Sydney isn’t the capital city of Australia, or that Rio isn’t the capital of Brazil, or that Istanbul isn’t the capital of Turkey. Or, that New York isn’t even a state capital. And let’s not get started on finding out that South Africa has not one but three capital cities, and that Johannesburg somehow isn’t one of them! In a world that’s gone crazy over capitals, you’d like to think Canada has our backs. But no. Ottawa is sitting pretty at the top of the pile and isn’t going anywhere.
How did Ottawa earn this honor? Well, British Queen Victoria chose it to become the capital of Canada in 1957. At the time, the city was known as Bytown and only had about 8,000 inhabitants.
Almost 100 inches of winter fun
Snow. Not everyone is a fan. But if you like the look of crisp fresh snow and you’re in the mood for a fairy-tale winter city, Ottawa is your friend. As the seventh coldest capital city in the world, this is a great place to indulge your winter wonderland fantasies.
With an average winter snowfall of about 93 inches every year, Ottawa is the place to come for postcard views of a metropolis poking out of the permafrost. Locals even build snow sculptures that put the rest of the world’s carrot-nosed snowmen and snowwomen to shame (please do be aware, however, of the driving conditions - you may need to know where to find car accident lawyers in the Ottawa area).
A view to remember has to be the parliament building, which overlooks the city - Edinburgh Castle style - from atop a hill. The parliament building is a symmetrical reimagining of the UK’s Houses of Parliament. However, whoever drew up the blueprints appears to have done so with only the memory of the Big Ben clock tower to go from, because they put it in the middle of the building and it’s wayyy too big. Still, under 100 inches of snow, everything looks selfie-tastic!
A thriving and youthful urban complex
Ottawa is home to five universities and two colleges. It's also home to around 2,000 tech companies attracting top emerging talent from around the world, perpetuating Ottawa's long-standing reputation as an important business and trade center.
What are we getting at? Well, almost half of Ottawa’s population is under 35. This means that if you’re hoping to meet someone to walk down life’s path with, Ottawa has an abundance of people looking to meet you, too.
An ice-skating record
Need somewhere to meet people? Try any of the nearly 300 outdoor ice rinks, open from 9AM until 1PM most days. Perhaps take a few lessons before you arrive, however - the locals are really quite well-versed in ice skating here!
The crown jewel in Ottawa's ice-skating offering is the Rideau Canal, a waterway that turns into the longest ice-skating rink in the world in winter.
A vibrant cultural center
Given its status as the country's capital and its youthful, dynamic population, Ottawa has a lot going on when it comes to cultural institutions and events. The city is home to over 14 museums, including Canada's most visited one, the Canadian Museum of Civilization.
The city's life is further enriched by over 35 large festivals that celebrate all sorts of arts, activities, and pleasures throughout the year, including food, music, film, circus, running, and more.
So here you have it: some useful and fun facts about visiting Ottawa to get you ready for your trip! Did you know all of these anecdotes? Let us know what you learned, or feel free to share more cool facts about Ottawa in the comment section below.